Already more than a month since the new president of Colombia took office. Gustavo Petro, the first left-wing head of state in the history of the Andean country, is not idle. Since taking office on August 7, radical reforms and decisions have followed one another. Among them: tax and army reform, the suspension of arrest warrants against leaders of the ELN guerrillas, and the installation of a Colombian ambassador to Venezuela.
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Environmental protection is also at the center of its policy and its proposals are not unanimous. Thus, the most important measure, which is the subject of great debate, is the gradual cessation of oil exploitation. If this measure was announced during his entire electoral campaign, it worries the national and international markets as much as the Colombian deputies and senators.
“We have seen signs of concern and risks of economic fragility. Above all because of decisions concerning the energy transition. These announcements of the end of oil production have generated a series of worrying debates, confirms Andres Cano, professor of economics at EAFIT University in Medellin. And all the more so since the transition would be faster than expected to follow the growth process of developing countries. It is important to take into account that 42% of Colombia’s exports are oil and 23% of the country’s budget depends on it.”
In addition to the energy transition, the new president is also interested in the Amazon. Against deforestation and fires, Gustavo Petro wants to act quickly and proposes the creation of an emergency fund international for the area. The president of Colombia announced it at the end of August: he intends to ask rich countries and big companies to pay farmers to take care of the Amazon rainforest and recover deforested areas. Because many fires are caused to obtain new land for agriculture. He is due to present the initiative at the next UN climate conference, to be held in Egypt next November. The objective is to create a financial fund of approximately 500 million dollars per year for 20 years.
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Remember that the Amazon basin, which measures 7.4 million km², covers nearly 40% of South America and extends over nine countries, with an estimated population of 34 million. According to the UN, between 2018 and 2021, Colombia lost an area of 7018 km2, a little more than the extent of the Brazilian city of Sao Paulo, due to deforestation.